Listen: Eminem's new song tackles self-doubt in powerhouse Beyoncé pairing

With Beyoncé singing the hook, Eminem takes on insecurities about his own musical abilities and staying power on the much-awaited lead single from his new album.

"Walk on Water," released early Friday afternoon, is an I'm-only-human internal monologue by the 45-year-old Detroit rapper, wrestling with the pressures of meeting the high standards set early in his career.

"Will this step / Just be another misstep / To tarnish whatever the legacy, love or respect / I’ve garnered?" he raps on the track, a placid piano ballad with few drum sounds or other instrumentation.

Eminem's work has always featured plenty of self-deprecation and raw self-questioning, but "Walk on Water" may be the most blatant display of anxiety about his actual music skills.

At one point, he references criticism he received for his contributions on Big Sean's "No Favors, and says he's "lucky to be around this long."

"Kids look to me as a god / This is retarded," Eminem raps. "If only they know it’s a façade and it’s exhaustive."

The track is Eminem's first new song since 2015's "Kings Never Die," and "Revival" would be his first album in four years.

The new single comes amid a flurry of Eminem activity: He's scheduled to perform at Sunday's MTV Europe Music Awards in London, and will play "Saturday Night Live" on Nov. 18. On Wednesday, his Shady Records hosted a 15th-anniversary celebration of his film "8 Mile" in Detroit. And the new album, presumably out next Friday, has been promoted with an ongoing fake pharmaceutical-ad campaign.